Semiconductor devices are commonly found in modern electronic products. Semiconductor devices vary in the number and density of electrical components. Discrete semiconductor devices generally contain one type of electrical component, e.g., light emitting diode (LED), small signal transistor, resistor, capacitor, inductor, and power metal oxide semiconductor field effect transistor (MOSFET). Integrated semiconductor devices typically contain hundreds to millions of electrical components. Examples of integrated semiconductor devices include microcontrollers, microprocessors, charged-coupled devices (CCDs), solar cells, and digital micro-mirror devices (DMDs).
Semiconductor devices perform a wide range of functions such as high-speed calculations, transmitting and receiving electromagnetic signals, controlling electronic devices, transforming sunlight to electricity, and creating visual projections for television displays. Semiconductor devices are found in the fields of entertainment, communications, power conversion, networks, computers, and consumer products. Semiconductor devices are also found in military applications, aviation, automotive, industrial controllers, and office equipment.
Semiconductor devices exploit the electrical properties of semiconductor materials. The atomic structure of semiconductor material allows its electrical conductivity to be manipulated by the application of an electric field or base current or through the process of doping. Doping introduces impurities into the semiconductor material to manipulate and control the conductivity of the semiconductor device.
A semiconductor device contains active and passive electrical structures. Active structures, including bipolar and field effect transistors, control the flow of electrical current. By varying levels of doping and application of an electric field or base current, the transistor either promotes or restricts the flow of electrical current. Passive structures, including resistors, capacitors, and inductors, create a relationship between voltage and current necessary to perform a variety of electrical functions. The passive and active structures are electrically connected to form circuits, which enable the semiconductor device to perform high-speed calculations and other useful functions.
Semiconductor devices are generally manufactured using two complex manufacturing processes, i.e., front-end manufacturing, and back-end manufacturing, each involving potentially hundreds of steps. Front-end manufacturing involves the formation of a plurality of die on the surface of a semiconductor wafer. Each die is typically identical and contains circuits formed by electrically connecting active and passive components. Back-end manufacturing involves singulating individual die from the finished wafer and packaging the die to provide structural support and environmental isolation.
One goal of semiconductor manufacturing is to produce smaller semiconductor devices. Smaller devices typically consume less power, have higher performance, and can be produced more efficiently. In addition, smaller semiconductor devices have a smaller footprint, which is desirable for smaller end products. A smaller die size may be achieved by improvements in the front-end process resulting in die with smaller, higher density active and passive components. Back-end processes may result in semiconductor device packages with a smaller footprint by improvements in electrical interconnection and packaging materials.
Another goal of semiconductor manufacturing is to produce higher performance semiconductor devices. Increases in device performance can be accomplished by forming active components that are capable of operating at higher speeds. In high frequency applications, such as radio frequency (RF) wireless communications, integrated passive devices (IPDs) are often contained within the semiconductor device. Examples of IPDs include resistors, capacitors, and inductors. A typical RF system requires multiple IPDs in one or more semiconductor packages to perform the necessary electrical functions.
FIG. 1 shows a conventional IPD semiconductor device. Semiconductor die 10 contains analog or digital circuits implemented as active devices, passive devices, conductive layers, and dielectric layers formed on a base material, such as silicon, and electrically interconnected according to the electrical design and function of the die. A resistive layer 12, conductive layer 14, resistive layer 16, and insulating layers 18 and 26 are formed below semiconductor die 10. A discrete semiconductor device 22 is mounted adjacent to semiconductor die 10. An encapsulant 24 is deposited using a molding process and then conductive layer 28a-28k is formed over semiconductor die 10. An insulating layer 30 and bumps 32 are formed over conductive layer 28a-28k. Conductive layer 14, resistive layer 16, insulating layer 18, and conductive layer 28d constitute a metal-insulator-metal (MIM) capacitor. Conductive layer 28b-28f is disposed under semiconductor die 10 and wound to exhibit inductive properties.
When forming the IPD, such as an inductor, in a semiconductor package, the bridge of the inductor is typically located beneath the semiconductor die. The IPD construction limits the size of the inductor that can be realized within the package. In addition, to achieve a high-Q inductor, a high resistivity silicon base material is required for semiconductor die 10. Otherwise, the eddy current losses from the inductor can interfere or otherwise adversely influence the operation of the die. The high resistivity substrate adds cost to the manufacturing process.